A main driver of rural landscape change is the rapid agricultural expansion and intensification required to satisfy increased food and other demands. In the quest to reach effective land management for the optimised use of natural resources, landscape approaches are becoming widely implemented – often related to the integration of agriculture and forestry. The landscape approach is used to analyze growing pressures on natural resources and how these can best be met in a sustainable manner.
This Discussion Forum will provide a platform for debating how the landscape approach can contribute to the sustainable management of land and water resources. We will build directly on the recommendations of the World Water Week seminar on the same subject. Thus far, sustainable water management and securing safe water for people living in or downstream the landscape is not at the fore of the landscape approach dialogue.
The full integration of the benefits of water and forested landscapes in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is both desirable and feasible. Aspirations for trees, forests and water can be both universal and differentiated to local circumstance. This Discussion Forum will present concrete options for the inclusion of forests and water within the post-2015 sustainable development framework.
Key speakers will share examples on how land use affects water and other resources. The main question the panellists will address will be: Is there scope for an integrated landscape approach to contribute to optimised watershed and river basin management that can be effective in realizing the SDGs?
There will be at least 45 minutes for interactive Q&A with the audience.
Key questions addressed
- How do we manage land and water resources holistically and sustainably to secure ecosystem services and meet the multiple needs from different users of the landscape?
- What have been the challenges of implementing landscape approaches regarding water resource management?
- What conditions at policy and capacity levels need to be in place for a landscapes approach to be successful in the context of sustainable water management?
Background reading
Forests and water; what policy makers should know
Background to World Water Week 2015
Forests and water: a policy perspective
Water, Forests, People – building resilient landscapes
